Contents

Development and theme

The episode was called "Giving Dangerously" then "Attack of the 50 Foot Dragon" before changing to its current title,[1] a play on the phrase "secret of my success". The previous title hints more to the episode's "giant monster rampaging through the city" theme popularized by the 1954 film Godzilla. The kidnapping of Rarity and subsequent aerial assault on Spike draws parallels with the classic 1933 film King Kong.

Summary

The Fire Ruby

The episode begins with Twilight Sparkle holding a "re-shelving day", which involves her taking all the Golden Oak Library books off the shelves and sorting them. While sorting books, she is distracted by Spike, who is busy admiring his birthday present to himself, an almost-ripe fire ruby that had been "aging [for] months".

Oh, my little Spikey-Wikey! *smooches*

Rarity then walks into the library and spots Spike's fire ruby, going on excitedly about its qualities. Twilight complains about the interruption, and Rarity apologizes, saying she "just came by to see if you had any books on historical fashion", but she quickly returns to Spike and questions his intent to eat the fire ruby. Spike realizes that Rarity really admires the gem, so he gives it to Rarity, who gives him a kiss on the cheek to show her appreciation. She giddily skips out and Spike vows never to wash his cheek again.

"Wow, Spike, that's one of the kindest, most generous things you've ever done. I've never seen Rarity so happy!"

— Twilight Sparkle

Spike's birthday party

The next scene opens with Twilight and Spike having just finished decorating for his birthday. Twilight pulls out a washcloth to wipe Spike's kissed cheek, which has become smudged and dirty. Spike resists and tries to escape, but after Twilight uses her magic to teleport him back to her repeatedly, Pinkie Pie magically appears with a party tweeter, she blows it at Twilight's face and distracts Spike with a "happy birthday" and streamers, giving Twilight a chance to get Spike and clean his cheek.

Everypony celebrating Spike's birthday.

Applejack, Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash and Rarity arrive with gifts, and they pile them one by one into Spike's arms until the tower of presents collapses on the floor. He confusedly looks at the presents until Rainbow Dash asks him, "Don't you know you get presents on your birthday?" He replies that it's his first birthday in Ponyville, and that he usually gets only one present...from Twilight...a book. Twilight stops in her tracks and sheepishly hides her present, a book, behind her, accompanied by a sound effect of a sheep bleating. Rarity then shows the ponies her new cape and says she's going to make one for each of her friends, inspired by Spike's generous ruby gift.

Birthday presents

Spike sits amidst piles of numerous presents and thanks Applejack for the present she gave him and gives her a hug. Applejack reminds him that he's already thanked her fifteen times, and he explains that he is just so grateful for their kindness, and wishes for the party to last forever. Hearing this, Pinkie Pie tells Spike that the party can't last forever because he has to go to Sugarcube Corner so he can collect the special surprise that the Cakes baked for his birthday.

The sapphire cupcake.

Spike hurries to Sugarcube Corner where the Cakes give him a sparkling, mouth-watering sapphire-studded cupcake. On his way home, he bumps into Cheerilee and drops the cupcake, but manages to catch it with his long forked tongue. He apologizes to Cheerilee, then eats the entire cupcake and helps her gather her dropped items. When she learns it's his birthday, she gives him a feathered white fedora and wishes him a great birthday.

While walking through Ponyville (during which Lyra Heartstrings and Sweetie Drops lean in toward one another before Derpy comes between them), Spike reasons that when ponies learn of his birthday, they will shower him with presents. He comes across Lickety Split playing with a ball, and solicits his ball from him as envisioned. Spike then comes across Junebug and uses the birthday ploy as an excuse to ask her for the flowers she's carrying. Twilight interrupts his spiel by tugging at his "ear" and apologizes for him getting carried away. When Twilight chides Spike, he appears to be remorseful and promises to give Cheerilee her hat back, but as soon as Twilight leaves, he puts the hat back on and asks "Who else has a present for Spikey-wikey?" The shot is accompanied by rattlesnake sounds, with Spike blinking with vertical eyelids and sticking out a wiggling forked tongue.

Growth spurt

"Spike, I'm worried about you. You're usually not so... grabby!"

— Twilight Sparkle

Spike's first growth spurt.

The next morning, Twilight wakes up to find a larger, ganglier Spike sleeping under a pile of accumulated presents. He looks at his new limbs and claws, and in a brief shot from his perspective, valuable items in the library shimmer. Twilight tries to talk to him, but he gets distracted by a glistening globe. Twilight takes away the globe, but Spike grabs it back and stacks it on a pile of objects. He asks to take one of the books, but Twilight takes it away from him and comments on how grabby he is. When he replies, he finds his voice has deepened, and becomes concerned about the changes.

Twilight takes him to the pediatrician Doc Top and then the veterinarian Mane Goodall, hoping to find out what's wrong with him. However, neither has any experience with dragons, while Spike continues to hoard objects. Finally, she visits Zecora, who explains:

"A dragon's heart is prone to greed, a steady diet to make growth speed. Then, the resulting bigger size only makes their hunger rise. If this trait should go unchecked, if Spike continues to collect, more growth will certainly occur – he is going to turn into a monster."

The frame expands to show everything from Zecora's hut missing, the door open, and Spike gone.

Attack of the fifteen-foot dragon

Spike already fifteen feet tall.

Twilight gallops back to Ponyville and finds Spike trying to pull Scootaloo's scooter from her grasp. Twilight lures him back to the library with an "amazing broom", and on his way he grows larger and starts walking on all fours. She tosses the broom into one of the rooms and shuts the door; Spike struggles to break through but then goes quiet. When she comes in to check, she finds him clutching a pile of books. She removes all the books and closes the door again, but then hears loud crashing noises and finds a Spike-shaped hole in the library wall, with Spike gone again. The scene wipes to Applejack wondering "Now who in Ponyville would steal my apples? For that matter, who would steal my leaves?" Twilight rushes to her and asks for her help to lasso Spike. Applejack laughs at the idea of Spike running wild, but then he runs past them with a pile of leaves and apples.

Twilight and Applejack chase Spike with a length of rope and lunge at him, but miss and manage to tie themselves to a tree while Spike continues rampaging. Rainbow Dash spots them and laughs at their predicament, when Fluttershy's distant scream cuts her short. The three find her hiding in a tree, and she tells them "a giant, rampaging dragon stormed through", who pulled her chicken coop out of the ground and filled it with "apples and stuff".

The cake assault begins.

The ponies next hear Pinkie Pie scream, and they find her pelting Spike with cakes while he collects some of them into his chicken coop of stuff. Spike grows so large that he crashes through the ceiling of Sugarcube Corner. As the others chase after Spike, Applejack tows Pinkie along by the tail, who can only stare in shock at her half-destroyed workplace.

Attack of the fifty-foot dragon

Spikezilla!

While Rarity tries on her cape at Carousel Boutique, Spike's gigantic eye peeks through the window, and he reaches in to kidnap Rarity. The scene fades to alarm sirens going off, which Spike grabs. Ponies panic in the streets of Ponyville while Spike rampages and tears off the top of a water tower to stash his hoard in it. He roars at Rarity, who he has held captive with the end of his tail. Rainbow Dash hovers on one side of Spike, screaming at him to let Rarity go, while Fluttershy politely entreats him on the other side. Spike refuses to listen to them, turns around and swings Rarity at them. Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy get caught up in Rarity's magenta cape, which tears off, sending the two falling into a river.

The Wonderbolts fly overhead and make some close fly-bys to Spike, accompanied by sound of polishing blades. Spike spots a nearby steep mountain and climbs it, Rarity dangling along. The Wonderbolts fly even closer to him and one of them shaves off some of Spike's spines with sheer speed. Spike empties the water tower tank into a cave, uses it to catch the Wonderbolts, then lodges the tank into the side of the mountain to trap them inside.

Spike turning back to normal.

Rarity launches into an angry diatribe, culminating in taking the remnants of her ripped cape and declaring it a "crime against fashion." Spike notices the fire ruby that she is wearing, and Rarity, seeing that it got his attention, tells him she won't let him have this gemstone: "This was given to me by my dear friend Spikey-wikey... the kindest, sweetest, most generous dragon ever. And it is too precious to me to give to a greedy old beast like you!" Spike looks at the gem wide-eyed and flashes back to the moment when he gave her the ruby and how she kissed his cheek. He touches his cheek and starts quaking, then winces and zaps into his old self. The tiny Spike and Rarity remain airborne for several seconds before plummeting. Rarity, shocked, realizes that Spike was the rampaging dragon.

Spike tries to confess about his crush, but Rarity stops him and smiles, her eyes welling with tears; and Spike smiles back. Meanwhile, Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy speed towards the two with the ripped cape from the river and catch Spike and Rarity in the air, safely lowering them to the ground. With the emergency over, the shot cuts to the water tank on the mountainside which peels off revealing the Wonderbolts huddled together, shivering. They notice that the tank fell off, strike a gallant pose to the sound of a hunting horn, and fly off.

Epilogue

"Spike, I just have to tell you how absolutely proud I am of you."

— Rarity

Spike writing his own report.

When safely with the others, Spike sits sadly on the bridge and places his hand in one of the giant footprints he made. Rarity comes up and says she's proud of him for stopping himself from destroying Ponyville, calling him her hero and giving him a kiss. The scene cross-fades to Spike narrating and writing a letter to Princess Celestia about the values of kindness and generosity, which are "more valuable than anything in the world. Well... almost anything." He turns to face the other way to reveal his cheek to the camera with Rarity's kiss framed like a picture. The episode ends with a kiss-shaped iris wipe on Spike's cheek.

Fluttershy: We'll be ever so grateful if you'd be so kind as to possibly consider...

Rainbow Dash: Drop her, scaly!

Rarity: Oh no. You are not getting THIS gemstone! This was given to me by my dear friend Spikey-wikey, the kindest, sweetest, most generous dragon ever. And it is too precious to me to give to a greedy old beast like you!

Spike: Rarity? I need to tell you something! Just in case we don't make it! I've always sort of had a crush– [Rarity covers his mouth, then smiles tearfully at him, Spike smiles back at her]

Rarity: Spike, I just have to tell you how absolutely proud I am of you.

Spike: Proud of me?

Rarity: Yes. It was you who stopped... w-well, you, from destroying Ponyville. You are my hero, Spikey-wikey! [kisses him on the cheek]